Noncontingent reinforcement (NCR) was applied to reduce the destructive behaviors of five-year-old quadruplets diagnosed with mental retardation and pervasive developmental disorder. Findings suggest that the effectiveness of NCR may be dependent on the use of a dense schedule of reinforcement initially and that systematic fading can increase the…

After finding that self-injurious behavior in two young males with developmental disabilities was negatively reinforced by escape from instructional activities, an intervention provided noncontingent escape on a fixed schedule and differential negative reinforcement of other behavior. Provision of escape, even when noncontingent, resulted in…

Three studies investigated environmental correlates of self-injurious behavior in seven developmentally disabled children and adolescents which were then later used for treatment. Correlates investigated included positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement, automatic reinforcement, and control. "Escape extinction" was successfully…

This paper reviews the functional properties and procedural variations of differential reinforcement for the reduction of behavior disorders in individuals with developmental disabilities. The paper proposes that limited success may be a result of the arbitrary relationship that exists between reinforcers and target behaviors when behavioral…

Analysis of the reinforcement and extinction components of differential reinforcement of other behavior (DRO) of three women with developmental disabilities and self-injurious behavior (SIB) found that DRO was only effective in combination with the relevant extinction component (withholding of attention for SIB). (Author/DB)

Assessment of self-injurious behavior (SIB) in three individuals with developmental disabilities revealed that the behavior was an escape response maintained by negative reinforcement. Treatment consisted of extinction plus instructional fading and resulted in immediate and large reductions in SIB behaviors. Maintenance occurred as instruction…

In this preliminary study, three parents who requested outpatient services for treatment of developmentally disabled children's problem behavior were taught to implement multiple treatment components. Therapists employed the most cost-efficient method first (i.e., written and verbal instructions) to teach prescribed behavior management strategies.…

This study examined methods for determining how extinction should be applied to different functions of self-injurious behavior, specifically head-banging of three children with developmental disabilities. Since each subject's head-banging was maintained by different reinforcement contingencies, behavioral treatment techniques, although all based…

This paper reviews the literature on functional assessment in the behavioral treatment of aggression in persons with mental retardation or developmental delays. Increased use of functional assessment and skill training is noted but no concomitant decrease in the use of intrusive procedures. (Author/DB)

This study compared selection of a preferred reinforcing stimulus just prior to a training session by either the trainer or subject with profound developmental disabilities. Results obtained with four adult subjects indicated little or no difference in reinforcement effects when reinforcing stimuli were selected by subjects rather than trainers.…

This report describes a database, Database Problem Behavior, which provides professionals in the area of problem behaviors and developmental disabilities with accessible information beyond their own disciplines. The current machine-readable database encompasses 885 empirical studies on the functional analysis and behavioral and pharmacological…

A simultaneous presentation procedure to select reinforcers was implemented with two four-year-old twin boys who were developmentally delayed, noncompliant, and mute. Use of the procedure quickly and efficiently identified preferred reinforcers which were then used in an instructional task. (DB)

A content analysis, consisting of 24 items covering behavior specification, objectives, program procedures, data collection, and quality assurance, was applied to 141 written behavior reduction programs of 2 large residential institutions for individuals with developmental disabilities. Use of the content analysis is recommended for program…

This study presents three cases of adults with profound developmental disabilities in which assessment data showed that self-injurious behavior occurred in at least two test conditions and describes a method used to analyze the effects of treatments based on hypotheses of multiple control. (Author/DB)

The self-injurious escape behavior of an adult with developmental disabilities was treated with extinction. Results of a reversal design showed substantial bursts of responding when extinction was introduced and reintroduced: self-injury remained at a variable and elevated rate for some time before stable, low rates were observed. (Author/DB)